7 Review Games to Make Standardized Testing More Fun

Let’s face it: review season can get super boring! When there is a ton of content to get through, it can feel like you’re using the same review games and activities over and over again. But in order to keep our students engaged and excited to learn, you have to keep things fresh.

That’s why I’m sharing my favorite review games and activities to make test prep season a bit more fun!

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#1 Gallery Walks

Not your typical gallery walk! We are going to make things simple and easy for you by using task cards. This task card gallery walk only takes a few minutes to set up. Simply tape task cards around the room or place them on desks. Then, pair students up or have them travel the room and solve the problems solo. Not only does this get your students up and moving but it is also a quick way to cover those heavier standards in a fun way. 

#2 Trashketball

A popular review game among middle school teachers is trashketball! You can use a mini-basketball hoop like this, but any sort of bin or trash can works, too. Place painter’s tape on the floor to make a 1 point line, 3 point line and 5 point line. The farther away from the basket, the more points. 

Break students up into groups of four. Each group will get the chance to answer a question. If the group answers correctly, they get a point and can shoot the basketball for more points from whatever line they choose. If they make it, they get the points. If they don’t, they still keep the point they earned for answering correctly. If they answer the question incorrectly, the next group has a chance to steal. The group with the most points at the end wins! I will say, this one has always been a favorite with my students!

#3 Online Review Games

I won’t lie to you: online review games are one of my favorites. Not only are they easy to set up (half the time you can find pre-made games), but students are really engaged and fueled by the competition aspect. My favorite online review games are Kahoot!, Blooket, Quizizz, Nearpod, and Gimkit. 

#4 Jeopardy

Surprisingly, Jeopardy is still popular in classrooms! Create a jeopardy board with categorized questions. This is a great way to review several units, concepts, or skills during one review period. Personally, I like to use Jeopardy Labs. It’s $20 for a lifetime membership.

#5 Glow Games

This review game is about creating a unique way for students to answer questions. You can use worksheets, task cards, or any other typical question format. But to make it interesting – turn out the lights! Set up blacklights, LED lights, and give students glow sticks to make the experience exciting.

#6 Heads Up

Reviewing vocabulary has never been more fun (and challenging) than with heads up. Write down content-specific vocabulary onto index cards. Then, a student will hold the card to their forehead without looking at the word. Their group or partner will give them hints as to what the word is without saying the actual vocabulary word.

#7 Whiteboards

There are tons of review games you can play with whiteboards, but I personally like to use them for team competitions! Break the class into two or more teams. Read or display a question, then have students write their answers on the boards. The first team to reveal the correct answer gets a point. If you don’t have a class set of whiteboards, you can use a sheet protector and add a piece of printed paper inside. Life hacks!

Mix and match these classroom review games to keep things interesting during test prep season!